document_title: Denver Broncos

question_text: who did denver beat in the super bowl

question_tokens: who did denver beat in the super bowl

root

text: Denver Broncos

text: Franchise history[edit]

text: 1960–1969: AFL era[edit]

text: The Denver Broncos were founded on August 14, 1959, when Minor League Baseball owner Bob Howsam was awarded an American Football League (AFL) charter franchise.[8] The Broncos won the first-ever AFL game over the Boston Patriots 13–10, on September 9, 1960. On August 5, 1967, they became the first-ever AFL team to defeat an NFL team, with a 13–7 win over the Detroit Lions in a preseason game.[8] However, the Broncos were not successful in the 1960s, compiling a record of 39–97–4 in the league.[9]

tag: p

text: Denver came close to losing its franchise in 1965, until a local ownership group took control and rebuilt the team.[10] The team's first superstar, "Franchise" Floyd Little, was instrumental in keeping the team in Denver, due to his signing in 1967 as well as his Pro Bowl efforts on and off the field. The Broncos were the only original AFL team that never played in the title game, as well as the only original AFL team never to have a winning season while a member of the AFL during the upstart league's 10-year history.[11]

text: In 1972, the Broncos hired former Stanford University coach John Ralston as their head coach. In 1973, he was the UPI's AFC Coach of the Year, after Denver achieved its first winning season at 7–5–2. In five seasons with the Broncos, Ralston guided the team to winning seasons three times. Though Ralston finished the 1976 season with a 9–5 record, the team, as was the case in Ralston's previous winning seasons, still missed the playoffs. Following the season, several prominent players publicly voiced their discontent with Ralston, which soon led to his resignation.[12]

text: Red Miller, a long-time assistant coach was hired and along with the Orange Crush Defense (a nickname originating in the early 1970s, also the brand of the popular orange-flavored soft drink) and aging quarterback Craig Morton, took the Broncos to what was then a record-setting 12–2 regular season record and their first playoff appearance in 1977, and ultimately first Super Bowl, in which they were defeated by the Dallas Cowboys (Morton's former team), 27–10.[13]

text: In 1981, Broncos' owner Gerald Phipps, who had purchased the team in May 1961 from the original owner Bob Howsam, sold the team to Canadian financier Edgar Kaiser Jr., grandson of shipbuilding industrialist Henry J. Kaiser.[14] In 1984, the team was purchased by Pat Bowlen, who placed team ownership into a family trust sometime before 2004 and remained in day-to-day control until his battle with Alzheimer's disease forced him to cede the team to Joe Ellis in 2014.[5][6][15]

text: 1983–1998: John Elway era[edit]

text: Dan Reeves became the youngest head coach in the NFL when he joined the Broncos in 1981 as vice president and head coach. Quarterback John Elway, who played college football at Stanford, arrived in 1983 via a trade. Originally drafted by the Baltimore Colts as the first pick of the draft, Elway proclaimed that he would shun football in favor of baseball (he was drafted by the New York Yankees to play center field and was also a pitching prospect), unless he was traded to a selected list of other teams, which included the Broncos.[16] Prior to Elway, the Broncos had over 24 different starting quarterbacks in its 23 seasons to that point.[17]

text: Reeves and Elway guided the Broncos to six post-season appearances, five AFC West divisional titles, three AFC championships and three Super Bowl appearances (Super Bowl XXI, XXII and XXIV) during their 12-year span together. The Broncos lost Super Bowl XXI to the New York Giants, 39–20; Super Bowl XXII to the Washington Redskins, 42–10; and Super Bowl XXIV to the San Francisco 49ers, 55–10; the latter score remains the most lopsided scoring differential in Super Bowl history. The last year of the Reeves-Elway era were marked by feuding, due to Reeves taking on play-calling duties after ousting Elway's favorite offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan after the 1991 season, as well as Reeves drafting quarterback Tommy Maddox out of UCLA instead of going with a wide receiver to help Elway. Reeves was fired after the 1992 season and replaced by his protégé and friend Wade Phillips, who had been serving as the Broncos' defensive coordinator.[18][19][20] Phillips was fired after a mediocre 1994 season, in which management felt he lost control of the team.

text: In 1995, Mike Shanahan, who had formerly served under Reeves as the Broncos' offensive coordinator, returned as head coach. Shanahan drafted rookie running back Terrell Davis. In 1996, the Broncos were the top seed in the AFC with a 13–3 record, dominating most of the teams that year. The fifth-seeded Jacksonville Jaguars, however, upset the Broncos 30–27 in the divisional round of the playoffs, ending the Broncos' 1996 run.[12]

text: 1997–1998: Back-to-Back Super Bowl Champions[edit]

text: During the 1997 season, Elway and Davis helped guide the Broncos to their first Super Bowl victory, a 31–24 win over the defending champion Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XXXII. Though Elway completed only 13 of 22 passes, throwing one interception and no touchdowns (he did, however, have a rushing touchdown), Davis rushed for 157 yards and a Super Bowl–record three touchdowns to earn the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award—this while overcoming a severe migraine headache that caused him blurred vision.[21] The Broncos repeated as Super Bowl champions the following season, defeating the Atlanta Falcons (led by Elway's longtime head coach Dan Reeves) in Super Bowl XXXIII, 34–19. Elway was named Super Bowl MVP, completing 18 of 29 passes for 336 yards, with an 80-yard touchdown to wide receiver Rod Smith and one interception.[20]

text: 1999–2011: Post-Elway era[edit]

text: John Elway retired following the 1998 season, and Brian Griese started at quarterback for the next four seasons. After a 6–10 record in 1999, the Broncos recovered in 2000, earning a Wild Card playoff berth, but losing to the eventual Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens. After missing the playoffs the following two seasons, former Arizona Cardinals' quarterback Jake Plummer replaced Griese in 2003, and led the Broncos to two straight 10–6 seasons, earning Wild Card playoff berths both years. However, the Broncos went on the road to face the Indianapolis Colts in back-to-back seasons and were blown out by more than 20 points in each game, allowing a combined 90 points.[12]

text: Plummer led the Broncos to a 13–3 record in 2005 and their first AFC West division title since 1998. After a first-round bye, the Broncos defeated the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, 27–13, denying New England from becoming the first NFL team ever to win three consecutive Super Bowl championships. The Broncos' playoff run came to an end next week, after losing at home to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Championship game, 34–17. The Steelers went on to win Super Bowl XL.

text: The Broncos' defense began the first five games of the 2006 season allowing only one touchdown—an NFL record, but struggled down the season stretch. Plummer led the team to a 7–2 record, only to struggle and be replaced by rookie quarterback Jay Cutler. Cutler went 2–3 as a starter, and the Broncos finished with a 9–7 record, losing the tiebreaker to the Kansas City Chiefs for the final playoff spot. Cutler's first full season as a starter in 2007 became the Broncos' first losing season since 1999, with a 7–9 record.

text: The 2008 season ended in a 52–21 loss at the San Diego Chargers, giving the Broncos an 8–8 record and their third straight season out of the playoffs. Mike Shanahan, the longest-tenured and most successful head coach in Broncos' franchise history, was fired after 14 seasons.[22]

text: On January 11, 2009, two weeks after Shanahan was fired, the Broncos hired former New England Patriots' offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels as the team's new head coach.[23] Three months later, the team acquired quarterback Kyle Orton as part of a trade that sent Jay Cutler to the Chicago Bears.

text: Under McDaniels and Orton, the Broncos jumped out to a surprising 6–0 start in 2009. However, the team lost eight of their next ten games, finishing 8–8 for a second consecutive season and missing the playoffs. The next season (2010), the Broncos set a new franchise record for losses in a single season, with a 4–12 record.[24] McDaniels was fired before the end of the 2010 season following a combination of the team's poor record and the fallout from a highly publicized videotaping scandal. Running backs coach Eric Studesville was named interim coach for the final four games of the 2010 season.[25] He chose to start rookie first-round draft choice Tim Tebow at quarterback for the final three games.

text: Following the 2010 season, Joe Ellis was promoted from Chief Operating Officer to team president, while John Elway returned to the organization as the team's Executive Vice President of Football Operations.[26] In addition, the Broncos hired John Fox as the team's 14th head coach. Fox previously served as the Carolina Panthers' head coach from 2002 to 2010.[27]

text: Following a 1–4 start to the 2011 season, Tim Tebow replaced Kyle Orton as the Broncos' starting quarterback, and led the Broncos to an 8–8 record and the team's first playoff berth and division title since 2005. The Broncos defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Wild Card round on a memorable 80-yard touchdown pass from Tebow to wide receiver Demaryius Thomas on the first play of overtime, setting a record for the fastest overtime in NFL history.[28] However, the Broncos were blown out by the New England Patriots in the Divisional round.[29]

text: 2012–2015: Peyton Manning era[edit]

text: In March 2012, the Broncos reached an agreement on a five-year, $96 million contract with former longtime Indianapolis Colts' quarterback Peyton Manning, who had recently missed the entire 2011 season following multiple neck surgeries.[30][31] This resulted in the Broncos subsequently trading incumbent quarterback Tim Tebow to the New York Jets.[32] The Broncos finished with a 13–3 record and the AFC's No. 1 seed in the 2012 playoffs, but were defeated by the Baltimore Ravens in the Divisional round.[33]

text: Like 2012, the Broncos finished with a 13–3 record and the AFC's No. 1 seed in 2013. In the 2013 playoffs, the Broncos defeated the San Diego Chargers in the Divisional round and the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship. However, the Broncos were soundly defeated by the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLVIII by a score of 43–8, the Broncos' first Super Bowl berth since winning back-to-back Super Bowls in 1997 and 1998.[34]

text: Prior to the start of the 2014 season, the Broncos announced that Pat Bowlen, the team's owner since 1984, relinquished control of the team due to his battle with Alzheimer's disease, resulting in team president Joe Ellis and general manager John Elway assuming control of the team.[15] The Broncos finished the 2014 season with a 12–4 record and the AFC's No. 2 seed. However, the Broncos were defeated by the Indianapolis Colts in the Divisional round of the 2014 playoffs, marking the third time in four seasons that the Broncos lost in the Divisional round of the playoffs. Quarterback Peyton Manning had been playing with strained quadriceps for the final month of the 2014 season.[35]

text: 2015: Super Bowl 50 Champions and Manning's Final Season[edit]

text: On January 12, 2015, one day after the aforementioned Divisional playoff loss to the Colts, the Broncos and head coach John Fox mutually agreed to part ways.[36] Fox left the Broncos with a .719 winning percentage in his four seasons as the Broncos' head coach—the highest in franchise history.[37] One week later, the Broncos hired Gary Kubiak as the team's 15th head coach. Kubiak served as a backup quarterback to executive vice president/general manager John Elway from 1983 to 1991, as well as the Broncos' offensive coordinator from 1995 to 2005.[38] Shortly after Kubiak became head coach, the Broncos underwent numerous changes to their coaching staff, including the hiring of defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, under whom the Broncos' defense ranked No. 1 in the NFL during the 2015 season.[39] The Broncos finished with a 12–4 record and the AFC's No. 1 seed, despite Peyton Manning having his worst statistical season since his rookie year with the Indianapolis Colts in 1998[40] and backup quarterback Brock Osweiler filling in for Manning during the second half of the regular season due to Manning suffering from a foot injury. In the playoffs, the Broncos defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 23–16 in the Divisional Round, the New England Patriots 20–18 in the AFC Championship, and defeated the Carolina Panthers 24–10 in Super Bowl 50—the Broncos' third Super Bowl title.[41]

text: 2016–present: Defensive era[edit]

text: On March 7, 2016, quarterback Peyton Manning retired after 18 NFL seasons during a press conference at the team's Dove Valley headquarters.[42] Following Manning's retirement, the Broncos have undergone changes at the quarterback position, including the free agent departure of backup quarterback Brock Osweiler to the Houston Texans, the trade acquisition of Mark Sanchez from the Philadelphia Eagles and the selection of Paxton Lynch during the 2016 draft. Sanchez, Lynch and second-year quarterback Trevor Siemian competed for the starting quarterback spot during the off-season and preseason; however, Sanchez was released and Siemian was named the starter prior to the start of the season. The Broncos finished the season 9–7 and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2010. On January 2, 2017, coach Gary Kubiak announced his retirement, citing health as the main reason for retiring.[43] The Broncos would later hire Vance Joseph to be their new head coach on January 11, 2017.[44][45] The Broncos have since entered the era of their dominant defense consisting of the Ground Control, and the No Fly Zone. The Broncos finished 5–11 in 2017 due to a poor offense, and signed quarterback Case Keenum in 2018.

text: Championships[edit]

text: Super Bowls[edit]

text:
Year
Coach
Super Bowl
Location
Opponent
Score
Record

1997
Mike Shanahan
XXXII
San Diego, CA
Green Bay Packers
31–24
12–4

1998
Mike Shanahan
XXXIII
Miami, FL
Atlanta Falcons
34–19
14–2

2015
Gary Kubiak
50
Santa Clara, CA
Carolina Panthers
24–10
12–4

Total Super Bowl championships won:
3

tag: table

text: AFC Championships[edit]

text:
Year
Coach
Location
Opponent
Score
Record

1977
Red Miller
Denver, CO
Oakland Raiders
20–17
12–2

1986
Dan Reeves
Cleveland, OH
Cleveland Browns
23–20 (OT)
11–5

1987
Dan Reeves
Denver, CO
Cleveland Browns
38–33
10–4–1

1989
Dan Reeves
Denver, CO
Cleveland Browns
37–21
11–5

1997
Mike Shanahan
Pittsburgh, PA
Pittsburgh Steelers
24–21
12–4

1998
Mike Shanahan
Denver, CO
New York Jets
23–10
14–2

2013
John Fox
Denver, CO
New England Patriots
26–16
13–3

2015
Gary Kubiak
Denver, CO
New England Patriots
20–18
12–4

Total AFC Championships won:
8

text: Rivalries[edit]

text: Divisional[edit]

text: The Denver Broncos have three AFC West rivals—the Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers and Oakland Raiders. All teams, along with the Broncos, were charter members of the American Football League (AFL), with each team placed in the AFL Western Division. The Broncos were barely competitive during the AFL years (1960–69), going a combined 10–49–1 against the Chiefs, Chargers and Raiders.

text: Kansas City Chiefs[edit]

text: The Broncos have had several memorable matchups with the Chiefs, particularly during the years in which John Elway was the Broncos' starting quarterback (1983–98). The Broncos defeated the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium in the divisional round of the 1997 NFL playoffs, en route to their first Super Bowl victory. The Chiefs currently hold a 61–55 series lead over the Broncos, including the aforementioned 1997 divisional playoff game.

text: Oakland Raiders[edit]

text: The rivalry with the Raiders was ignited in 1977, when the Broncos advanced to their first Super Bowl by defeating the defending champion Raiders in the 1977 AFC Championship. The rivalry intensified in the mid-1990s, when Mike Shanahan was hired as the Broncos' head coach in 1995. Shanahan coached the Raiders in 1988 before being fired four games into the 1989 season. The Raiders currently hold a 63–52–2 series lead over the Broncos, including 1–1 in the playoffs.

text: San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers[edit]

text: Unlike their records against the Chiefs and Raiders, the Broncos currently have a winning record against the Chargers, with a 65–51–1 series lead, including 1–0 in the playoffs. The Broncos pulled off one of the largest comebacks in Monday Night Football history, when Peyton Manning led the Broncos from a 24–0 halftime deficit to a 35–24 win at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium during the 2012 season. The two teams met in the playoffs for the first time on January 12, 2014, at Denver's Sports Authority Field at Mile High, with the Broncos winning 24–17.

text: Seattle Seahawks[edit]

text: The Broncos had an old rivalry with the Seattle Seahawks, who were members of the AFC West from 1977 to 2001, prior to the Seahawks' move to the NFC West as part of the NFL's 2002 re-alignment.[46] During the 25 years in which the Seahawks resided in the AFC West, the Broncos went 32–18 against the Seahawks, including a loss at Seattle in the 1983 NFL playoffs. Since 2002, the two teams have split four interconference meetings,[47] and the two teams met in Super Bowl XLVIII on February 2, 2014, with the Seahawks winning by a score of 43–8.[48]

text: Historical[edit]

text: Aside from the aforementioned AFC West teams, the Broncos have had intra-conference rivalries over the years with the Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots.

text: Cleveland Browns[edit]

text: The Broncos had a brief rivalry with the Browns that arose from three AFC championship matches from 1986 to 1989. In the 1986 AFC Championship, quarterback John Elway led The Drive to secure a tie in the waning moments at Cleveland Municipal Stadium; the Broncos went on to win in 23–20 in overtime.[49] One year later, the two teams met again in the 1987 AFC Championship at Mile High Stadium. Denver took a 21–3 lead, but Browns' quarterback Bernie Kosar threw four touchdown passes to tie the game at 31–31 halfway through the 4th quarter. After a long drive, John Elway threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to running back Sammy Winder to give Denver a 38–31 lead. Cleveland advanced to Denver's 8-yard line with 1:12 left, but Broncos' safety Jeremiah Castille stripped Browns' running back Earnest Byner of the football at the 2-yard line—a play that has been called The Fumble by Browns' fans. The Broncos recovered it, gave Cleveland an intentional safety, and went on to win 38–33.[50] The two teams met yet again in the 1989 AFC Championship at Mile High Stadium, which the Broncos easily won by a score of 37–21.[51] Interestingly, the Broncos would not win the Super Bowl after any of the championship games where they beat the Browns.

text: Pittsburgh Steelers[edit]

text: As of the end of the 2015 season, the Broncos and Steelers have met in postseason play eight times, tied with five other pairings for the most frequent playoff matchups in NFL playoff history. The Broncos currently own a 5–3 playoff record vs. the Steelers.[52] Perhaps the most memorable postseason matchup occurred in the 1997 AFC Championship, in which the Broncos defeated the Steelers 24–21 at Three Rivers Stadium, en route to their first Super Bowl victory. Eight years later, the Steelers returned the favor at INVESCO Field at Mile High, defeating the Broncos 34–17 in the 2005 AFC Championship, and subsequently won Super Bowl XL.[53] In the Wild Card round of the 2011 playoffs, in a game dubbed The 3:16 game, the Broncos stunned the Steelers 29–23 on the first play of overtime, when quarterback Tim Tebow connected with wide receiver Demaryius Thomas on an 80-yard game-winning touchdown pass.[54] The teams met again in the Divisional round of the 2015 playoffs at Denver, where the Broncos defeated the Steelers 23–16 on their way to a victory in Super Bowl 50.[55]

text: New England Patriots[edit]

text: The Broncos and Patriots met twice annually during the American Football League (AFL) years from 1960 to 1969, and played in the first-ever AFL game on September 9, 1960.[56] Since 1995, the two teams have met frequently during the regular season, including nine consecutive seasons from 1995 to 2003.[57] As of the end of the 2015 season, the two teams have met in the playoffs five times, with the Broncos owning a 4–1 record.[58] The teams' first playoff match on January 4, 1987 was John Elway's first career playoff win,[59] while the teams' second playoff match on January 14, 2006 game was the Broncos' first playoff win since Elway's retirement after the 1998 season.[60] The game was also notable for Champ Bailey's 100-yard interception that resulted in a touchdown-saving tackle by Benjamin Watson at the 1-yard line.[61] On October 11, 2009, the two teams met with former Patriots' offensive coordinator, Josh McDaniels as the Broncos' head coach. Both teams wore their AFL 50th anniversary jerseys.[62] The game featured a 98-yard drive in the fourth quarter, with a game-tying touchdown pass from Kyle Orton to Brandon Marshall, followed by an overtime drive led by Orton that resulted in a 41-yard game-winning field goal by Matt Prater.[63] The two teams met in the Divisional round of the 2011 playoffs, with the Patriots blowing out Tim Tebow and the Broncos by a score of 45–10.[29] The Broncos' rivalry with the Patriots later intensified when longtime Indianapolis Colts' quarterback Peyton Manning became the Broncos' starting quarterback from 2012 to 2015. Manning and Patriots' quarterback Tom Brady maintained a legendary rivalry from 2001[64] until Manning's retirement after the 2015 season.[65] Though Brady dominated Manning in regular season play, winning nine of twelve meetings, Manning won three of five playoff meetings, the last of which was a Broncos' 20–18 win in the 2015 AFC Championship.[66]

text: Logos and uniforms[edit]

text: When the Broncos debuted in 1960, their original uniforms drew as much attention as their play on the field. They featured white and mustard yellow jerseys, with contrasting brown helmets, brown pants and vertically striped socks. Two years later, the team unveiled a new logo featuring a bucking horse, and changed their team colors to orange, royal blue and white. The 1962 uniform consisted of white pants, orange helmets, and either orange or white jerseys.[67]

text: In 1968, the Broncos debuted a design that became known as the "Orange Crush." Their logo was redesigned so that the horse was coming out of a "D." Additionally, the helmets were changed to royal blue, with thin stripes placed onto the sleeves, and other minor modifications were added. From 1969 to 1971, and again from 1978 to 1979, the team wore orange pants with their white jerseys.[68]

text: The Broncos wore their white jerseys at home throughout the 1971 season, as well as for 1980 home games vs. the San Diego Chargers and Dallas Cowboys, the latter in hopes to bring out the "blue jersey jinx" which has followed the Cowboys for decades (it worked, the Broncos won 41–20). The Broncos wore their white jerseys for 1983 home games vs. the Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Raiders and Cincinnati Bengals, but would not wear white at home again for two decades — see next section.[68][69]

text: In 1994, in honor of the 75th anniversary season of the NFL, the Broncos wore their 1965 throwback uniforms for two games—a Week 3 home game against the Raiders, as well a road game at the Buffalo Bills the following week.[68]

text: The Broncos radically changed their logo and uniforms in 1997, a design that the team continues to use to this day. The new logos and uniforms were unveiled on February 4, 1997.[70] Navy blue replaced royal blue on the team's color scheme. The current logo is a profile of a horse's head, with an orange mane and navy blue outlines.[71] The Broncos' popular live animal mascot Thunder was the inspiration to incorporate a horse-head profile as part of the logo on the team's helmets.[72] During a February 4, 1997 press conference introducing the new logo, the team president and the art director for Nike, who were the creators of the new design, described it as "a powerful horse with a fiery eye and mane."[73]

text: The Broncos began wearing navy blue jerseys, replacing their longtime orange jerseys that had been the team's predominant home jersey color since 1962. This new uniform design features a new word mark, numbering font and a streak that runs up and down the sides of both the jerseys and the pants. On the navy blue jerseys, the streak is orange, with an orange collar and white numerals trimmed in orange, while on the road white jerseys, the streak is navy blue, with a thin orange accent strip on both sides, a navy collar and navy numerals trimmed in orange. When they debuted, these uniforms were vilified by the press and fans, until the Broncos won their first ever Super Bowl in the new design that same season. The navy blue jerseys served as the team's primary home jersey until the end of the 2011 season — see next section.[71]

text: In 2002, the Broncos introduced an alternate orange jersey that is a mirror image of the aforementioned navy blue jerseys, but with orange and navy trading places. Like the road white jerseys, the white pants with the navy blue streaks running down the sides are worn with this uniform. This jersey was used only once in the 2002 and 2004 seasons, and were used twice per season from 2008 to 2011. Mike Shanahan, the team's head coach from 1995 to 2008, was not a big fan of the alternate orange jerseys.[74] The Broncos previously wore orange jerseys as a throwback uniform in a Thanksgiving Day game at the Dallas Cowboys in 2001.[75]

text: The team also introduced navy blue pants in 2003, with orange side streaks to match with the navy blue jerseys. Though they were part of the uniform change in 1997 (in fact, they were worn for a couple of 1997 preseason games) and most players wanted to wear them, the only player who vetoed wearing them was John Elway, thereby delaying their eventual introduction.[76] From 2003 to 2011, these pants were primarily used for select prime-time and late-season home games (excluding the 2008 season), and since 2012, are used exclusively with the now-alternate navy blue jerseys — see next section.

text: On November 16, 2003, the Broncos wore their white jerseys at home for the first time since 1983, in a game vs. the San Diego Chargers. This was compensation for a uniform mix-up, after the teams' first meeting at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium in Week 2 earlier that season, when the Chargers were the team that was supposed to declare their uniform color. The Chargers were planning to wear their white jerseys, but the visiting Broncos came to the stadium in white, and were fined $25,000 by the NFL as a result. When the two teams met at INVESCO Field at Mile High later that season (Week 11), the NFL allowed the visiting Chargers to choose their uniform color in advance, and they chose navy blue, forcing the Broncos to wear their white jerseys at home.[76]

text: In 2009, in honor of their 50th anniversary season as one of the eight original American Football League teams, the Broncos wore their 1960 throwback uniforms (brown helmets, mustard yellow and brown jerseys) for games against two fellow AFL rivals—a Week 5 home game vs. the New England Patriots, as well as the following week at the San Diego Chargers.[77][78]

text: Beginning in 2012, the orange jerseys that served as the alternate colored jerseys from 2002 to 2011 became the primary home jersey, while the navy blue jerseys that served as the primary home jersey from 1997 to 2011 switched to alternate designation. The change was made due to overwhelming popularity with the fans, who pressured the Broncos to return to orange as the team's primary home jersey color.[71] Since the 2012 uniform change, the team has worn the alternate navy blue jerseys for at least one home game per season, with the exception of 2013, in which the Broncos wore their alternate navy blue uniforms for an October 6, 2013 road game at the Dallas Cowboys.[79] The team will either wear the navy blue or the white pants — with the orange side stripes — to match with the alternate navy blue jerseys. The team initially did not wear the white pants with the orange side stripes, until a November 1, 2015 game vs. the Green Bay Packers, in which the Broncos wore said design in order to match the uniform ensemble that was used during the team's Super Bowl XXXII win over the Packers.[80]

text: As the designated home team in Super Bowl 50, the Broncos — who have an 0–4 Super Bowl record when using their standard orange jerseys — chose to wear their white jerseys as the designated "home" team.[81]

text: In 2016, the Broncos' unveiled a new Color Rush uniform, which the team wore for a Thursday Night game at the San Diego Chargers on October 13, 2016. The uniform kit contained the following features: orange pants, which the team wore for the first time since 1979, orange socks and shoes, along with block-style numerals trimmed in navy blue that mirrored the team's 1968–1996 uniform style. Due to the NFL's one-helmet rule implemented in 2013, the helmets remained the same, with the team temporarily replacing the modern primary logo with the throwback "D-horse" logo.[82] The same uniform was used for a Thursday Night game against the Indianapolis Colts during the 2017 season.[83]

text: Super Bowl uniform colors[edit]

text:
Super Bowl
Date
Opponent
Favorite
Jersey Color
Result

XII (12)
January 15, 1978
Dallas Cowboys
Cowboys by 6

L 10–27

XXI (21)
January 25, 1987
New York Giants
Giants by 9.5

L 20–39

XXII (22)
January 31, 1988
Washington Redskins
Broncos by 3

L 10–42

XXIV (24)
January 28, 1990
San Francisco 49ers
49ers by 12

L 10–55

XXXII (32)
January 25, 1998
Green Bay Packers
Packers by 11

W 31–24

XXXIII (33)
January 31, 1999
Atlanta Falcons
Broncos by 7.5

W 34–19

XLVIII (48)
February 2, 2014
Seattle Seahawks
Broncos by 2

L 8–43

50
February 7, 2016
Carolina Panthers
Panthers by 5.5

W 24–10

text: Home field[edit]

text: For most of their history, the Denver Broncos played in Mile High Stadium. The AFL Broncos played at the University of Denver's Hilltop Stadium from time to time, including the first-ever victory of an AFL team over an NFL team: The Broncos beat the Detroit Lions on August 5, 1967, in a preseason game. The team has sold out every home game (including post-season games) since the AFL–NFL merger in 1970, with the exception of two replacement games during the 1987 strike (but both were sold out before the strike).

text: During home games, the attendance is announced to the crowd, along with the number of no-shows (the fans subsequently boo the no-shows). The fans are also known to chant "IN-COM-PLETE!" every time the visiting team throws an incomplete pass.[84] The stadium's legendary home-field advantage is regarded as one of the best in the NFL, especially during the playoffs. The Broncos had the best home record in pro football over a 32-year span from 1974 to 2006 (191–65–1). Mile High Stadium was one of the NFL's loudest stadiums, with steel flooring instead of concrete, which may have given the Broncos an advantage over opponents, plus the advantage of altitude conditioning for the Broncos. In 2001, the team moved into Invesco Field at Mile High, built next to the former site of the since-demolished Mile High Stadium. Sportswriter Woody Paige, along with many of Denver's fans, however, often refuse to call the new stadium by its full name, preferring to use "Mile High Stadium" because of its storied history and sentimental import. Additionally, The Denver Post had an official policy of referring to the stadium as simply "Mile High Stadium" in protest, but dropped this policy in 2004.[85]

text: Prior to the 2011 season, Englewood, Colorado-based sporting goods retailer Sports Authority claimed the naming rights of Invesco Field, which became known as Sports Authority Field at Mile High.[86][87] However, in the summer of 2016, Sports Authority went bankrupt, and the Broncos have been seeking a new corporate sponsor for their stadium ever since.[88]

text: The altitude has also been attributed as part of the team's home success. The stadium displays multiple references to the stadium's location of 5,280 feet (1.000 mi) above sea level, including a prominent mural just outside the visiting team's locker room. The team training facility, the UCHealth Training Center (formerly known as the Paul D. Bowlen Memorial Broncos Centre), is a state-of-the-art facility located in Dove Valley, Colorado. With 13.5 acres of property, the facility hosts three full-size fields, a complete weight and training facility, and a cafeteria.[89][90]

text: In their more than half-century of existence, the Broncos have never been shut out at home, a streak of over 400 games as of the 2016 season.[91]

text: In late 2012, the Broncos announced that the stadium will receive $30 million upgrades including a new video board in the south end zone that is planned to be three times larger than the previous display. The renovations were finished before kickoff of the 2013 season.[92]

text: Statistics[edit]

text: Season-by-season records[edit]

text: Players of note[edit]

text: Current roster[edit]

text:
Denver Broncos roster

view
talk
edit

Quarterbacks

 4 Case Keenum
 6 Chad Kelly
12 Paxton Lynch

Running backs

23 Devontae Booker
37 Royce Freeman
33 De'Angelo Henderson
32 Andy Janovich FB
 2 Phillip Lindsay
36 David Williams

Wide receivers

13 Kenny Bell
15 River Cracraft
 9 John Diarse
17 DaeSean Hamilton
11 Carlos Henderson
19 Jordan Leslie
16 Isaiah McKenzie
81 Tim Patrick
10 Emmanuel Sanders
14 Courtland Sutton
87 Jordan Taylor
88 Demaryius Thomas
85 Jimmy Williams

Tight ends

80 Jake Butt
84 Troy Fumagalli
82 Jeff Heuerman
83 Matt LaCosse
89 Brian Parker
86 Austin Traylor

Offensive linemen

72 Garett Bolles T
64 J. J. Dielman C
76 Max Garcia G
63 Leon Johnson T
70 Sam Jones G
73 Andreas Knappe T
79 Cyrus Kouandjio T
65 Ronald Leary G
60 Connor McGovern G
61 Matt Paradis C
74 Jeremiah Poutasi G
71 Austin Schlottmann C
77 Billy Turner G
66 Jared Veldheer T
75 Menelik Watson T
68 Elijah Wilkinson T

Defensive linemen

91 Paul Boyette NT
99 Adam Gotsis DE
96 Shelby Harris DE
92 Zach Kerr DE
-- Caushaud Lyons DE
98 Clinton McDonald DE
94 Domata Peko NT
90 Kyle Peko NT
57 DeMarcus Walker DE
93 DeShawn Williams DE
95 Derek Wolfe DE

Linebackers

50 Zaire Anderson ILB
48 Shaquil Barrett OLB
40 Keishawn Bierria ILB
-- Bo Bower ILB
55 Bradley Chubb OLB
51 Todd Davis ILB
52 Jerrol Garcia-Williams ILB
46 Jeff Holland OLB
47 Josey Jewell ILB
43 Joseph Jones ILB
59 Stansly Maponga OLB
54 Brandon Marshall ILB
58 Von Miller OLB
56 Shane Ray OLB
49 Marcus Rush OLB
-- Antonio Simmons OLB

Defensive backs

22 Tramaine Brock CB
20 Jamal Carter SS
21 Su'a Cravens SS
25 Chris Harris Jr. CB
39 Michael Hunter CB
27 Brendan Langley CB
 3 Trey Marshall SS
30 Jordan Moore SS
34 Will Parks FS
38 Marcus Rios CB
29 Bradley Roby CB
31 Justin Simmons SS
28 C. J. Smith CB
26 Darian Stewart FS
35 Dymonte Thomas FS
41 Isaac Yiadom CB

Special teams

 1 Marquette King P
42 Casey Kreiter LS
 8 Brandon McManus K

Reserve lists

53 Deiontrez Mount OLB (IR)

Rookies in italics
Roster updated June 15, 2018
Depth chart • Transactions
88 Active, 1 Inactive, 2 Unsigned
→ AFC rosters → NFC rosters

AFC East
BUF
MIA
NE
NYJ
North
BAL
CIN
CLE
PIT
South
HOU
IND
JAX
TEN
West
DEN
KC
LAC
OAK

NFC East
DAL
NYG
PHI
WAS
North
CHI
DET
GB
MIN
South
ATL
CAR
NO
TB
West
ARI
LAR
SF
SEA

text: 50th Anniversary Team (2009)[edit]

text: The Denver Broncos announced the club's 50th anniversary team on September 15, 2009. The anniversary team was voted on by users at DenverBroncos.com from June 6 – September 4, 2009.[93]

text:
show

v
t
e

Denver Broncos 50th Anniversary Team (2009)

Offense

QB
Elway
RB
Davis
Little
WR
McCaffrey
Smith
TE
Sharpe
T
Lepsis
Zimmerman
G
Bishop
Schlereth
C
Nalen

Defense

DE
Fletcher
R. Jackson
DT
Pryce
Carter
LB
Mecklenburg
Gradishar
T. Jackson
CB
Bailey
Wright
S
Atwater
Smith

Special teams

K
Elam
P
Rouen
RS
Upchurch

text: Retired numbers[edit]

text:
Denver Broncos retired numbers

No.
Player
Position
Career

7
John Elway
QB
1983–98

18
Frank Tripucka
Peyton Manning
QB
1960–63
2012–15 †

44
Floyd Little
RB
1967–75

text: † Note: No. 18 was re-issued for Peyton Manning after Tripucka gave his approval; it was used by Manning from the 2012 season until his retirement after the 2015 season.[94] Manning's name was added to the retired number's banner as an honorable mention.[95][96][97]

text: Pro Football Hall of Famers[edit]

text:
Denver Broncos Hall of Famers

No.
Name
Position(s)
Season(s)
Inducted

24
Brown, WillieWillie Brown
CB
1963–66
1984

30
Davis, TerrellTerrell Davis
RB
1995–2001
2017

33
Dorsett, TonyTony Dorsett
RB
1988
1994

7
Elway, JohnJohn Elway
QB
General Manager
1983–98
2011–present
2004

65
Zimmerman, GaryGary Zimmerman
OT
1993–97
2008

44
Little, FloydFloyd Little
RB
1967–75
2010

84
Sharpe, ShannonShannon Sharpe
TE
1990–99,
2002–03
2011

text: Ring of Fame[edit]

text: The Broncos have a Ring of Fame on the Level 5 façade of Sports Authority Field at Mile High, which honors the following:

text:
Denver Broncos Ring of Fame

No.
Name
Position(s)
Seasons
Inducted

23
Goose Gonsoulin
S
1960–66
1984

87
Rich Jackson
DE
1967–72
1984

44
Floyd Little
RB
1967–75
1984

87
Lionel Taylor
WR
1960–66
1984

–
Gerald Phipps
Owner
1961–81
1985

12
Charley Johnson
QB
1972–75
1986

70
Paul Smith
DE
1968–78
1986

18
Frank Tripucka
QB
1960–63
1986

36
Billy Thompson
S
1969–81
1987

7
Craig Morton
QB
1977–82
1988

25
Haven Moses
WR
1972–81
1988

15
Jim Turner
PK
1971–79
1988

53
Randy Gradishar
LB
1974–83
1989

57
Tom Jackson
LB
1973–86
1992

20
Louis Wright
CB
1975–86
1993

7
John Elway
QB
General manager
1983–98
2011–present
1999

77
Karl Mecklenburg
LB
1983–95
2001

49
Dennis Smith
S
1981–94
2001

65
Gary Zimmerman
OT
1993–97
2003

27
Steve Atwater
S
1989–98
2005

30
Terrell Davis
RB
1995–2001
2007

84
Shannon Sharpe
TE
1990–99, 2002–03
2009

80
Rod Smith
WR
1994–2006
2012

66
Tom Nalen
C
1994–2007
2013

21
Gene Mingo
RB, K, RS
1960–64
2014

–
Dan Reeves
Head coach
1981–92
2014

80
Rick Upchurch
WR, RS
1975–83
2014

–
Pat Bowlen
Owner
1984–present
2015

1
Jason Elam
PK
1993–2007
2016

73
Simon Fletcher
LB/DE
1985–95
2016

47
John Lynch
S
2004–07
2016

—
Red Miller
Head coach
1977–80
2017

text: Super Bowl MVPs[edit]

text:
Super Bowl MVP Winners

Super Bowl
Player
Position

XXXII
Terrell Davis
RB

XXXIII
John Elway
QB

50
Von Miller
LB

text: Colorado Sports Hall of Fame[edit]

text: Staff[edit]

text: Head coaches[edit]

text: Current staff[edit]

text:
Denver Broncos staff

v
t
e

Front Office

Owner – Pat Bowlen
President/CEO – Joe Ellis
President of Football Operations/General Manager – John Elway
Director of Player Personnel – Matt Russell
Senior Personnel Advisor – Tom Heckert Jr.
Senior Personnel Advisor – Gary Kubiak
Director of Pro Personnel – A.J. Durso
Director of Football Administration – Mike Sullivan
Director of Team Administration – Mark Thewes
Director of Player Development – Ray Jackson
Director of Football Analytics – Mitch Tanney
Director of College Scouting – Brian Stark

Head Coaches

Head Coach – Vance Joseph
Assistant to Head Coach – Rob Grosso

Offensive Coaches

Offensive Coordinator – Bill Musgrave
Quarterbacks – Mike Sullivan
Running Backs – Curtis Modkins
Wide Receivers – Zach Azzanni
Tight Ends – Geep Chryst
Offensive Line (Guards/Centers) – Sean Kugler
Offensive Line (Tackles) – Chris Strausser
Offensive Assistant/Quarterbacks – Klint Kubiak
Offensive Quality Control – Christopher Kragthorpe

Defensive Coaches

Defensive Coordinator – Joe Woods
Defensive Line – Bill Kollar
Linebackers – Reggie Herring
Defensive Backs (Safeties) – Marcus Robertson
Defensive Backs (Cornerbacks) – Greg Williams
Assistant Defensive Line – Chris Beake
Defensive Quality Control – Charles Gordon
Pass-rush Consultant – DeMarcus Ware

Special Teams Coaches

Special Teams Coordinator – Tom McMahon
Assistant Special Teams – Chris Gould

Strength and Conditioning

Strength and Conditioning – Loren Landow
Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Tyler Hill
Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Anthony Lomando
Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Cedric Smith

→ Coaching Staff
→ Management
→ More NFL staffs

AFC East
BUF
MIA
NE
NYJ
North
BAL
CIN
CLE
PIT
South
HOU
IND
JAX
TEN
West
DEN
KC
LAC
OAK

NFC East
DAL
NYG
PHI
WAS
North
CHI
DET
GB
MIN
South
ATL
CAR
NO
TB
West
ARI
LAR
SF
SEA

text: Radio and television[edit]

text: The Broncos' flagship radio station is currently KOA, 850AM, a 50,000-watt station owned by Clear Channel Communications. Dave Logan is the play-by-play announcer, with former Broncos' wide receiver Ed McCaffrey serving as the color commentator beginning in 2012, replacing Brian Griese.[98] Until 2010, preseason games not selected for airing on national television were shown on KCNC, channel 4, which is a CBS owned-and-operated station, as well as other CBS affiliates around the Rocky Mountain region. On May 26, 2011, the Broncos announced that KUSA channel 9, an NBC affiliate also known as 9NEWS in the Rocky Mountain region, will be the team's new television partner for preseason games.[99]

text: In 2011, the Broncos began a partnership with KJMN, 92.1 FM, a leading Spanish language radio station owned by Entravision Communications (EVC). The partnership also includes broadcasting rights for a half-hour weekly TV show on KCEC, the local Univision affiliate operated by Entravision Communications.[99]

text: Notable fans and in the media[edit]

text:
Tim McKernan, a.k.a. Barrel Man, began wearing a barrel in 1977 after making a $10 bet with his brother, Scott, that by wearing one he could get on television. McKernan won the bet, and the barrel he had painted to look like an Orange Crush soda can became his signature costume, and resulted in him becoming one of the Broncos' most recognized fans and a popular mascot. McKernan died on December 5, 2009.[100]
The animated television show South Park, set in Park County, Colorado, often mentions the Denver Broncos; show creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone both grew up in Colorado as devout Broncos fans.[101]
In The Simpsons episode "You Only Move Twice", Hank Scorpio gives Homer Simpson the Denver Broncos as a thank-you gift for helping him. Homer complains that he wanted to own the Dallas Cowboys, as the Broncos team that just arrived are playing very sloppy football on his front lawn (a reference to the team losing four Super Bowl appearances, three by significant margins including Super Bowl XII against Dallas). Incidentally, the Broncos were 13–3 in the 1996 season, and won the Super Bowl the next 2 seasons. In the episode, "The Bonfire of the Manatees", Homer picks the Broncos to win the Super Bowl over the Seattle Seahawks. The two teams later did play against each other in Super Bowl XLVIII which aired on Fox, the U.S. home of The Simpsons.
In the Mork & Mindy episode "Hold That Mork", Mork's character, played by Robin Williams, became the first male cheerleader in Broncos' history. As a member of the "Pony Express", he trotted out on the field at Mile High Stadium during an actual Broncos' game vs. the New England Patriots on November 11, 1979. The episode aired exactly two weeks later.[102]
Many former Broncos are now in broadcasting, including Shannon Sharpe, Mark Schlereth, Alfred Williams, Tom Jackson, Ed McCaffrey, Brian Griese, David Diaz-Infante, Terrell Davis and John Lynch.

tag: ul


document_title: Lucknow Pact

question_text: who brought about a compromise between muslim league and congress in 1916

text: Lucknow Pact

text: This article does not cite any sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

text: Lucknow Pact refers to an agreement reached between the moderates , militants and the Muslim League at the joint session of both the parties, held in Lucknow, in the year 1916. Muhammad Ali Jinnah, then a member of the Congress as well as the League, made both the parties reach an agreement to pressurize the British government to adopt a more liberal approach to India and give Indians more authority to run their country, besides safeguarding basic Muslim demands. After the unpopular partition of Bengal, Jinnah approached the League to make it more popular among the Muslim masses. Jinnah himself was the mastermind and architect of this pact. Due to the reconciliation brought about by Jinnah between the Congress and the League, the Nightingale of India, Sarojini Naidu, gave him the title of “the Ambassador of Hindu-Muslim Unity”.

text: The Lucknow Pact also established cordial relations between the two prominent groups of the Indian National Congress – the "hot faction" garam dal led by Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai and Bipin Chandra Pal, the Lal Bal Pal and the moderates or the "soft faction", the naram dal led by Gopal Krishna Gokhale.

text: Muslim League and Congress[edit]

text: As a result of the work of Jinnah, as well as Mahajan from the Congress, both the Muslim League and the Congress met for their annual sessions at Bombay in December 1915. The principal leaders of the two political parties assembled at one place for the first time in the history of their organisations. The speeches made from the platform of the two groups were similar in tone and theme. Within a few months of the Bombay meetings, nineteen Muslim and Hindu elected members of the Imperial Legislative Council addressed a memorandum to the Viceroy on the subject of reforms in October 1916. Their suggestions did not become news in the British circle, but were discussed, amended and accepted at a subsequent meeting of the Congress and Muslim League leaders at Calcutta in November 1916. This meeting settled the details of an agreement about the composition of the legislatures and the quantum of representation to be allowed to the two communities. The agreement was confirmed by the sessions of the Congress and the League in their annual sessions held at Lucknow on December 29 and December 31 1916.

text: Main features[edit]

text:
There shall be self-government in India.
The same method should be adopted for the Executive Councils of Governors.
The Indian Council must be abolished.
The salaries of the Secretary of State for Indian Affairs should be paid by the British government, not from Indian funds.
The executive should be separated from the judiciary..
The number of Muslims in the provincial legislatures should be laid down province by province.
Muslims should be given 1/3 representation in Central Government.
There should be separate electorates for all communities until they ask for joint electorate.
System of weight-age should be adopted.
Term of Legislative Council should be 5 years.
Half of the members of Imperial Legislative Council must be Indians.

tag: ol


document_title: East Germany–West Germany football rivalry

question_text: who won more world cups east or west germany

text: Political background[edit]

text: After the end of the Second World War four occupation zones existed in Allied-occupied Germany. The British, French and US zones gradually merged to form West Germany, the Federal Republic of Germany, on 23 May 1949. In the Soviet occupation zone East Germany, the German Democratic Republic, was formed on 7 October 1949. Separated throughout the Cold War, the German Democratic Republic merged into the Federal Republic of Germany on 3 October 1990, referred to as the German reunification.[9]

text: Football games between teams from the two countries were sometimes referred to as class struggle between the capitalist West and the communist East, but more often just seen as a "fight between brothers" or an inner-German duel.[5][6]

text: Overview[edit]

text: When football resumed in occupied post-Second World War Germany attempts were made to stage a unified national championship that would include teams from all four occupation zones, including the Soviet zone. A 1947 edition of the German football championship, the first since 1944, was planned and scheduled to include one team from the Soviet zone but eventually cancelled.[10] In the following season the 1948 German football championship was held and the Soviet zone champions SG Planitz, winner of the 1948 Ostzonenmeisterschaft, had been invited but was refused permission to travel by the occupation authorities.[11][12]

text: Soviet occupation zone clubs did not participate in any of the following German championships but clubs from West and East Berlin still participated in a unified league, the Stadtliga Berlin, until the end of the 1949–50 season. Union Oberschöneweide, a club from the eastern part of the city, qualified for the 1950 German football championship but was not permitted to travel to the west and shortly after the East Berlin clubs withdrew from the league to join the DDR-Oberliga instead.[13]

text: Friendlies between clubs from the East and West were still common in the 1950s but almost disappeared in the decades after. Arguably the most anticipated of those was the game between 1. FC Kaiserslautern, West German champions in 1951 and 1953 and runners-up in 1954 and 1955, and Wismut Karl-Marx-Stadt, the current East German champions, on 6 October 1956. The game between the two clubs had received 400,000 orders for tickets and 100,000 watched the game in the Zentralstadion at Leipzig, seeing a 5–3 victory for Kaiserslautern. The two teams played a returned leg in the following year which Kaiserslautern also won.[14]

text: With the introduction of the European Cup in 1955–56 the West German champions participated in this competition while the East German champions entered from 1957–58 onward. While the possibility existed that teams from the two Germany's could be drawn against each other this did not happen until the 1973–74 edition when Dynamo Dresden met FC Bayern Munich in the second round and lost 7–6 on aggregate. After the draw for the second round anticipation for the first ever-encounter of the two champions and the "true German championship". The first leg in Munich was not a sell-out but the return leg in Dresden saw 300,000 ticket requests.[15]

text: In the same season 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig eliminated Fortuna Düsseldorf in the third round of the UEFA Cup and from there encounters between clubs from the East and West become more common in UEFA club competitions.[16] Apart from these encounters the 1985–86 European Cup Winners' Cup third round-second leg game between Bayer 05 Uerdingen and Dynamo Dresden is still well-remembered. Dresden had won the first leg 2–0 at home and led 3–1 at half time in Uerdingen when the latter scored six unanswered goals to win the tie 7–5 on aggregate, a game often dubbed the Miracle of the Grotenburg, named after Uerdingen's stadium. The game was voted as the greatest football match of all time by German magazine 11 Freunde.[7][8] Another high-profile encounter was the return leg of the European Cup tie between SV Werder Bremen and Berliner FC Dynamo in which the latter had won the first leg 2–0 but lost 5–0 in Bremen.[17]

text: On national team level West Germany played its first post-war international on 22 November 1950 against Switzerland in Stuttgart,[18] while East Germany played their first game against Poland on 21 September 1952 in Warsaw and its 293rd and last on 12 September 1990 against Belgium in Brussels.[19] The two sides met just once on senior national team level, on 22 June 1974, in a group game of the 1974 FIFA World Cup, held in West Germany. The game in Hamburg, in front of 62,000, was won 1–0 by the guest team courtesy to a goal by Jürgen Sparwasser.[20] East Germany finished the tournament in sixth place while West Germany won the FIFA World Cup. For the East it was the only participation while the West won the 1954 and 1990 editions as well.[4] The two countries never met again at this level despite West Germany frequently requesting a rematch but the East declining, despite strong interest from East German players, coaches and fans.[21] With the German reunification a special game between the two former countries was planned for 21 November 1990 in Leipzig but was cancelled after a fatal shooting of a supporter at a game between FC Sachsen Leipzig and FC Berlin by the police on 3 November.[22][23] West and East Germany had been drawn against each other for the qualifying of the 1992 UEFA European Football Championship but the latter was withdrawn because of the German reunification.[24]

text: At Olympic Games level the East German and West German Olympic teams first encountered each other in the qualifying competition for the 1964 Summer Olympics football tournament where East Germany won its home game 3–0 while West Germany won theirs 2–1, resulting in the East advancing to the games where the team won a bronze medal.[25] The two met again at the 1972 Summer Olympics, held in Munich, West Germany, with East Germany winning this game as well, 3–2, and eventually winning another bronze medal.[25][26][27] While the East German team consisted of top-level players from the DDR-Oberliga the West German team was an amateur side.[5] The East German team would also win the gold medal in 1976 and a silver medal in the following games in 1980.[25]

text: Aftermath[edit]

text: While, during the era of the divided Germany, at times a strong but distant friendship existed between clubs and supporters this has changed since the German reunification. In the divided Berlin the two most popular clubs on either side, Hertha BSC and 1. FC Union Berlin often saw support banners in their stadiums for the other. After the fall of the Berlin Wall this friendship continued for a time but eventually has turned into a strong rivalry and dislike of the two clubs and their supporters.[28]

text: European club competitions[edit]

text: The encounters between East and West German clubs in the European Cup competitions.[29]

text: European Cup[edit]

text: On four occasions East and West German clubs were drawn against each other in the European Cup. All four encounters were won by the West German team and on three of those occasions, in 1973–74, 1974–75 and 1982–83 the winners would go on to win the competition.

text:
Season
Round
Team 1
Aggregate score
Team 2
1st leg
2nd leg

1973–74
Second round
FC Bayern Munich
7–6
Dynamo Dresden
4–3
3–3

1974–75
Second round
FC Bayern Munich
5–3
1. FC Magdeburg
3–2
2–1

1982–83
First round
Berliner FC Dynamo
1–3
Hamburger SV
1–1
0–2

1988–89
First round
Berliner FC Dynamo
3–5
SV Werder Bremen
3–0
0–5

text: European Cup Winners' Cup[edit]

text: The European Cup Winners' Cup saw just one encounter between clubs from the two countries which the West German side won.

text:
Season
Round
Team 1
Aggregate score
Team 2
1st leg
2nd leg

1985–86
Quarter finals
Dynamo Dresden
5–7
Bayer 05 Uerdingen
2–0
3–7

text: UEFA Cup[edit]

text: Teams from the two countries met twelve times in the UEFA Cup with the East German clubs winning the encounters twice, 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig being the successful side on both occasions. The other ten times West German clubs advanced.

text:
Season
Round
Team 1
Aggregate score
Team 2
1st leg
2nd leg

1973–74
Third round
Fortuna Düsseldorf
2–4
1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig
2–1
0–3

1974–75
Third round
Hamburger SV
6–3
Dynamo Dresden
4–1
2–2

1977–78
Second round
1. FC Magdeburg
5–5
FC Schalke 04
4–2
1–3

1978–79
Second round
FC Carl Zeiss Jena
0–3
MSV Duisburg
0–0
0–3 aet

1979–80
Second round
Dynamo Dresden
1–1
VfB Stuttgart
1–1
0–0

1980–81
Second round
VfB Stuttgart
7–2
FC Vorwärts Frankfurt
5–1
2–1

1981–82
First round
1. FC Magdeburg
3–3
Borussia Mönchengladbach
3–1
0–2

1982–83
First round
FC Vorwärts Frankfurt
3–3
SV Werder Bremen
1–3
2–0

1983–84
Second round
1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig
2–1
SV Werder Bremen
1–0
1–1

1983–84
First round
Bayer 05 Uerdingen
7–0
FC Carl Zeiss Jena
3–0
4–0

1988–89
Semi-finals
VfB Stuttgart
2–1
Dynamo Dresden
1–0
1–1

1990–91
First round
Borussia Dortmund
4–0
Chemnitzer FC
2–0
2–0

text: Key[edit]

text:
East German club
West German club